In a unique fusion of art and social engagement, 55-year-old Canadian sculptor Timothy Schmalz has emerged as an artistic voice for Pope Francis’ social and spiritual message. Over the past decade, his monumental bronze sculptures have found homes not only in major cities around the world but also in historic churches in Rome and even in the heart of the Vatican. Many of them have been blessed by the Pope and serve as visual homilies on central themes of his pontificate: mercy, human dignity, and solidarity with the marginalized.

“I am dedicated to creating works of art that glorify Christ. The reason for this devotion, in addition to my Christian beliefs, is that an artist needs an epic subject to create epic art. I describe my sculptures as visual prayers. When I create a three-dimensional bronze sculpture, I know it will outlast me. I realize I am sandwiched between two things far more enduring than I am: Christianity and the metal of bronze. It is between these two that I have developed a subtle appreciation for what St. Francis meant by the concept of an instrument,” Timothy states. In the wake of Francis’s passing, Schmalz can offer the public a unique perspective on the Pope’s legacy through the lens of sacred art. The majority of his work revolves around spiritual themes, with a wide repertoire of sculptures such as Homeless Jesus (2016), Angels Unawares (2019), Sheltering (2022), Mary Untier of Knots (2022), Let the Oppressed Go Free (2023), and Be Welcoming (2025), each capturing the spirit of Pope Francis’s call to build a “Church for the poor.”

Schmalz’s relationship with the Pope began in 2016 with the unveiling of Homeless Jesus, a life-size sculpture depicting Christ as a homeless man lying on a bench, whose identity is revealed only by the nail marks in his feet. The work deeply moved Pope Francis, who has made supporting the poor and homeless a cornerstone of his ministry. The Vatican soon approved its installation near the Apostolic Almoner’s Office, and it has since been replicated in dozens of countries, from the United States to Ireland to South Africa.

This sculpture captured worldwide attention and sealed the beginning of their relationship. “I met Pope Francis when he blessed my small sculpture of Homeless Jesus. It was a very symbolic moment because he reached out and said a prayer—as he touched the knee of the Homeless Jesus—and I think, in a sense, that’s what he was doing in the world: reaching out to the marginalized, to the invisible, and blessing them,” Timothy says.

Their collaboration deepened with Angels Unawares (2019), a six-meter bronze monument installed in St. Peter’s Square—a rare honor, as it is the first sculpture to be installed in the square in over four hundred years. Inspired by the biblical verse Hebrews 13:2 (“Do not forget to entertain strangers, for by so doing some have entertained angels unwittingly”), the piece depicts a dense group of 140 migrants and refugees from different eras and cultures, crowded into a boat. In the center of the work, only the wings of an angel can be seen, its figure almost completely hidden by the other migrants. This suggests that the divine is present in all of them and that the act of migration, throughout history, has always been linked to the spiritual.

The inauguration, presided over personally by Pope Francis, took place on September 29, 2019, coinciding with the Vatican’s World Day of Migrants and Refugees (WDR), reinforcing the Church’s commitment to migration justice. Pope Francis celebrated a special Mass in St. Peter’s Square. Following Mass and the Angelus, he inaugurated the sculpture, a powerful visual tribute to the plight and dignity of migrants and refugees throughout history.

As with his most significant works, Tim has been inspired by Cardinal Michael Czerny, Prefect of the Dicastery for Promoting Integral Human Development, to create works that were close to the Holy Father’s heart and gave greater visibility to his concerns. “Working in my studio, I was an artistic soldier for Pope Francis, and I had the feeling he was right behind me, watching as I sculpted.”

In 2022, Schmalz presented Sheltering, which depicts a life-size figure being gently covered with a sheet by a dove, a symbol of the Holy Spirit. The work was inspired by Isaiah 58, which calls us to fulfill the spiritual duty of clothing the naked. That same year, it was blessed by Pope Francis in St. Peter’s Square.

Also in 2022, Schmalz unveiled Mary, Untier of Knots (Alberta, Canada), which was blessed by the Pope as a gift to Indigenous peoples. The artist also honored the Pope’s devotion to human dignity with Let the Oppressed Go Free (2023), which addresses the crisis of human trafficking. Installed in the Italian town of Schio, this striking sculpture depicts chained figures being freed by Saint Bakhita, symbolizing both the pain of modern slavery and the hope of liberation. It was designed to coincide with the International Day of Prayer and Reflection against Human Trafficking, an initiative strongly supported by the Pope.

Viewers may not know that Bakhita was enslaved in Sudan, sold to an Italian family, freed, and later became a Canossian nun and saint, a great patron of liberation, well represented in this work. Cardinal Czerny believes that Tim’s artwork can serve as an instrument of evangelization. “His works embody and touch profound meanings. If you look, for example, at the sculpture of Saint Bakhita in Let the Oppressed Go Free, you can see how she opens a manhole cover, letting the prisoners out. If you look closely and see the faces of the freed people and also her face, you notice that her position is essential but modest. She is not at the center of the sculpture. It is a very graphic representation of the Church’s role in every liberation process: not leading, but helping it happen.”

More recently, on April 15, the statue Be Welcoming (2025) was installed in St. Peter’s Square, near the Showers for the Poor and the Mother of Mercy Clinic, beneath the colonnade. It depicts a man sitting on a bench, apparently homeless, carrying only two belongings: a full backpack slung over his shoulder and a walking stick in his hand. The sculpture celebrates hospitality and emphasizes the moral and theological imperative to welcome strangers, in line with Pope Francis’s frequent calls for inclusion and global fraternity toward migrants. As the artist reveals: “This was the last sculpture Pope Francis approved to be permanently installed in the Vatican. It reminds me of something Pope Francis once said in one of his exhortations: ‘Preach everywhere, and if necessary, even do it with words.’ Here, Pope Francis is using a work of art to celebrate the actions being taken to help the real homeless people in St. Peter’s Square.”

Tim Schmalz describes his collaboration with the Pope as an artistic alliance cemented by shared values. For him, working with the Pope has been a humbling and inspiring experience. “Art,” he says, “is one of the most powerful tools for conveying moral truth. With Pope Francis, that truth is simple, yet radical: everyone matters.” His sculptures—realistic and deeply symbolic—invite the viewer to reflect not only on Christian teachings but also on their civic responsibility toward others. Schmalz also emphasizes the value of the faithful being able to touch the sculpture and, in a sense, touch the Scriptures with their own hands. The sheen on the hand of a bronze African migrant, worn by the caresses of pilgrims, evidences this physical and spiritual connection.

For his part, Schmalz shares his creative process as a path of personal and spiritual redemption. His experience while sculpting can become a form of active prayer, a vehicle for grace and inner growth. As a figurative artist, Tim seeks to create epic works that connect with the viewer through design and detail, which not only move emotionally but also allow the observer to feel “part” of the piece.

Tim Schmalz’s art is a testament to how creativity can challenge, comfort, and call humanity to action, guided by faith. As his sculptures continue to appear in public squares, churches, and sacred spaces around the world, Schmalz’s collaboration with Pope Francis exemplifies how faith, art, and activism can converge to shape a more compassionate world. Together, they have transformed sculpture into a form of social preaching.